Macdaddy

Some guys can own a gun for 25 years and the wood looks fantastic. I can own a gun for 25 min and the stock looks like it was abused by a chimp on crack! I can' t help it I' m tough on my stuff. I ride it hard and occasionally have to put it away wet. My guns get most of their maint where you can' t see it. I like to look at the cool guns at the shop, but in my hands they are doomed, so my wood stocks will slowly be replaced with synthetic or laminate depending on the use.

Synthetic is the way to go for me.

FL/GA Hunter

While I was out scouting this weekend, I read an interesting article about stocks that brought something I hadn' t thought of to the table.

You know I' ve been supporting synthetics because you can beat the **** out of them and not have any problems, to which many people have said, ' don' t treat them bad.' Perfectly reasonable answer. The other thing, though, besides rainstorms, snow, dropping them off cliffs, etc, is much more subtle. Say you hunt in Florida (like me [8D]), with 175% humidity every day. Then you take a trip to the high mountains to hunt elk (like me someday [8D]). The humidity there is like 10%. Just that simple change will cause the stock to expand and contract, and can shift the zero on the gun.

Again, I will repeat, there is nothing more beautiful than a gorgeous wood-stocked gun, and I intend to own plenty of them, but there comes a time when you have to use your gun as a tool, and a synthetic stock is a more useful tool. If you have to trust your gun, there' s no question which stock is more dependable. You just don' t have to coddle it.

bigcountry

I love wood stocks. But I have had several which seems to warp after bad weather. Seen a winchester featherwieght that shoots like nobodies business have the channel cleared and barrel floated, now after winter, it has a bad pressure point at the end of the forarm. How can this be. Didn' t even take it out in bad weather. All I can think of is at the range in the fall I fired a bunch of shots and the barrel got very hot. And I couldn' t slide a dollar bill down the channel and barrel. But when it cooled it was fine. Now have to clear the channel again, and now the stock will look uneven at the forearm.

So now I got a new medallion. And if its raining, I take my synthetic 270win, if its nice, I will take the medallion.

footballplaya

hmm.. i like all the varied opinions.. but i love the way synthetic looks couples w/ a stainless teel action and barrel and scope.. anyone know whre i can get a synthetic stock w/ a thumbhole??? i' d love to have one.. email me w/ some info if u don' tmind..

8mm/06

If your wood stocks are well made from a good grained chunk,... and sealed properly....they can shoot darn well. Many methods for making a synth stock shoot well apply to wood as well.......pillar bedding, glass bedding.....stiffening the stock with aluminum bars........... Care must be taken to keep oil and solvents out of the wood.....and the humidity in storage must be kept fairly constant. There is no question though, that you can avoid all these issues with a quality synth stock. They just don' t look as good to me. I own a few though.

gatsby1923

Wood can hold up just as well or at least pretty damn good to synthetic. BUT many do now for several reasons. One many manufacturers stock there rifles with cheap birch stocks dyed a walnut color. Birch is an OK wood but it is not as good as walnut, can be a close second IF they cured the wood properly. Today most wood used in manufacturing is purchases kiln dried where as in the past when labor, and wood prices where cheaper many manufacturers bought green wood and cured it themselfs in drying sheds. (Savage Arms did this till the late 60' s). Also finally very few gunstocks are oil finished. A good Oil finished stock holds up a heck of a lot better than any epoxy or varnish finish because it allows the wood to breath. I myself hunt with some older Savage- Steven’s Rifles, and Shotguns and I have never had a major wood problem. On the other hand I can see the point of why many choose synthetic stocks and stainless steal rifles. They get the job done just as well, and it’s just a matter of personal Taste, and bugit.

Dave